


It's a Ren-tal

by TheGoose2012



Category: RWBY
Genre: F/M, Humor, One Shot, Shipping, Short, Short & Sweet, Short One Shot, The RWBY Nook, challenge
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-18
Updated: 2020-06-18
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:40:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,394
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24789394
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheGoose2012/pseuds/TheGoose2012
Summary: Ren goes for his first drive, but quickly finds Vale's roads more dangerous than expected.One-shot for a kart racer shipping challenge at The RWBY Nook. A great place for RWBY fanfic authors to hang out and support one another. Find it on Twitter at @RwbyNook to request an invite.
Relationships: Lie Ren & Nora Valkyrie, Lie Ren/Nora Valkyrie
Kudos: 11





	It's a Ren-tal

Ren had never driven before. Despite all his travels in Mistral, most people didn't use cars outside of the cities. The trails between villages weren't ideal for such. It wasn't that he _couldn't_ drive. He just never had need to do so.

Apparently, that wasn't a good enough excuse for his friends.

_I can see why people enjoy this so much,_ Ren thought as he stuck his arm out the open window, signaling his next turn. The car – a rental – handled fantastically, responding to his slightest input with ease. The wind rustled his hair as he picked up speed once more. From a safety perspective, the roadster design was horrible.

But it sure was fun.

Despite his complete lack of experience, Ren had spent considerable time the last few days preparing. He'd read Vale's rules of the road manual at least a dozen times. He'd studied videos of driving techniques. He'd even done research on how to drive a manual transmission vehicle – though, thankfully, his rental proved to be an automatic. Just to be safe, he'd set up an insurance policy yesterday, even if the rental agent had assured him repeatedly that such was unnecessary.

"Get out of the way, grandpa!"

And, boy, was that a smart decision. Ren watched another vehicle shoot past him, the driver glaring angrily before flooring it to zoom away. _Does no one in Vale practice defensive driving?_ He'd been cut off multiple times, had people riding his tail constantly, and even seen a few minor collisions. Vale's roads seemed more lawless than the Mistralian wilderness.

Still, the recklessness of others failed to infect him. Just because everyone else wanted to rush about at breakneck speeds didn't mean he had to. Ren signaled a lane change, but had to jerk back to the left as another vehicle shot around him before taking the turn too fast for his taste. He was fairly certain their tire clipped the curb, but they just laughed and went on their way, uncaring of the accident they'd nearly caused. Sadly, there was nothing he could do except continue to be the lone example of responsible vehicular operation.

_Ten and two._ Ren gripped the steering wheel firmly, before remembering another pamphlet he'd read. _No. Now it's eight and four, right?_ His hands slid further down the wheel. Apparently, the lower grip was safer in the event of airbag deployment. _Wait, does this vehicle even have airbags?_ Ren felt he could kick himself for his failure to check before renting. He slowed down a little more, just to be safe.

"Move it, ya jerk!" Yet another psychotic resident of Vale screamed by. Ren barely avoided having his fender clipped by the dangerous driver as he swerved in front of Ren's car. His Huntsman reflexes had proven invaluable yet again.

_I know him,_ Ren realized with a feeling of disappointment. The careless driver was, in fact, a second-year at Beacon. Ren made a mental note to track down the careless boy's leader when he got back to the school. Such foolhardy behavior was unbecoming of a Huntsman.

The impatient drivers he shared the road with continued to buzz past, though most ignored the cautious vehicle in the right lane. Everyone seemed in a hurry, but no one really appeared to have anywhere to go. Ren spied a familiar car – the one who had called him grandpa mere minutes ago – fly past. Going nowhere fast seemed incredibly applicable at the moment. In fact, now that he was paying attention, it seemed all the vehicles had passed him before. Some more than once. It became a sort of game to see if he could guess which vehicle would come next. The dark blue car came ahead of the white one, as expected. The yellow and red ones had switched, though. He shook his head as the second-year in his purple roadster shot by again, followed a little too closely by the jet black one. If his calculations were correct, then the next vehicle should be…

_Oh no._

Ren barely had a moment to think before a horrible crunching sound sent all of Remnant spinning out of control, leaving Ren to clutch his steering wheel desperately. By the time his car came to a stop, he found himself facing the wrong way. Other vehicles slowed down, carefully passing the wreckage before speeding away once more. _Rubberneckers._ None of them cared for his plight except for how much it slowed them down.

No one except his rental agent, who even now was running to the scene, waving for the other cars to stop. Well, him and the energetic girl who'd caused the accident.

"Gotcha!"

"That was entirely unsafe, Nora," Ren scolded as his partner laughed from the bright pink missile she'd struck him with. "Didn't you study the material I gave you last night?"

"Of course I studied," Nora answered, waving away his quite warranted concern. "I think they call that a pit maneuver. It's even more fun than it looks!"

"I did not find it enjoyable." Ren had never been in an accident before. _Do I need to notify the authorities?_ No one was injured, but he assumed a police officer would know what to do. Then again, he didn't want to get Nora in any trouble with the law.

"You again?" the young man who'd rented out their vehicles asked in disbelief as he approached. "I thought I warned you about hitting other karts."

"You warned me about ramming them in the back," Nora corrected. "I hit Ren in the side."

The difference gave the guy pause, though only for a moment. "Either way, park rules say I have to make you leave the ride."

"I'd like to apologize for my partner. I'm sure my insurance will cover any damages." Ren had triple-checked that his policy included rental coverage before signing the paperwork.

"Your…what?"

"My insurance." Ren pulled out the small card from his wallet and handed it to the young man. The bright logo of Casualty Auto of Remnant sat above his account number and agent contact information. He'd added Nora as a secondary driver, just to be safe. "I assure you I have full coverage."

"Full coverage?" The rental agent seemed perplexed. "I…don't think that'll be necessary," he informed Ren, handing the small card back with a confused look. Ren had to assume they had their own coverage. Or maybe the lack of damage to the small cars was the issue. Suddenly, the thick, rubber strip encircling each vehicle seemed ingenious.

"Whatever. C'mon, Ren! Let's go check out the bumper cars."

Ren sighed as he exited the go-kart and hurried after his partner. "We can't, Nora. You already got us kicked out of there." Apparently, they didn't approve of Nora's plan to wield Magnhild while driving. "And the arcade." The poor Whack-a-Grimm game never stood a chance. "And the high striker guy said we shouldn't come anywhere near his stand again."

"I don't see what the big deal was," Nora protested, oblivious to the chaos she'd caused at the strength testing game. "He still owes me a stuffed Grimm."

_And you owe him a new tower._ Sure, she'd rung the bell easily enough, but she probably should've used the provided hammer, rather than her own. The pair were quickly becoming pariahs at the Vytal Festival fairgrounds. Ren couldn't wait for their fight in the Tournament so Nora could use her power more constructively.

Or destructively, if you asked their opponents. It was all a matter of perspective.

"I'm bored, Ren!" Nora wailed. "We've still got two hours until Ruby's fight. I demand entertainment!"

Knowing that a bored Nora was a dangerous Nora, Ren hastened to figure out some way to distract his partner. A sickly sweet smell nearby gave him an idea.

"How about some cotton candy?"

"Cotton what now?"

"Cotton candy," Ren repeated, pointing at the cart nearby. "The process is fascinating. They melt sucrose, then spin it in a centrifuge, where it cools and solidifies into fluffy strands." The resulting silence drew an exasperated sigh from Ren. "It's flavored sugar on a stick."

"They _have_ that?!" Ren winced as Nora's hand clamped tightly around his wrist, dragging him along as she yelled, "Candy man! How much for the cart?"

Ren wondered if they'd even be allowed back to the fairgrounds at this rate.


End file.
